I love chicken wings! When I’m not making mojo chicken wings, you’ll definitely see me making these Guava BBQ Chicken Wings!
As a matter of fact, I often wonder why I don’t make them more often. That’s how delicious they are! In case you’re new here, let me tell you a little about guava.
What is Guava?
Guava is a tropical fruit that is oval in shape with a rough light green skin. Their insides are a light pink color and they taste a little sour-sweet.
There are several varieties of guava fruits but the most common one taste like a mix between a strawberry and a lemon.
Now because of the fruit’s high pectin content, you’re able to make guava jams, guava marmalade, and guava paste from the fruit.
Guava paste is essentially like fruit leather made by cooking the guava fruit and sugar until it becomes a very thick [delicious] paste. While the jams and marmalade are drippy, the guava paste is thick and sticky, but still soft enough to slice.
While you’ll usually see guava being used in sweet recipes, today we’re using it to make guava bbq sauce for these guava bbq chicken wings!
Why You’ll Love These Guava BBQ Wings
- 3 Ways To Make Them. Bake them, air fry them, or grill them. Either way, you can’t lose! I share all three different ways to make them in the blog post linked below.
- Crispy & smothered in Guava BBQ sauce. No matter which cooking method you decide to use, these chicken wings will be crispy, sweet, tangy, and addicting. Guaranteed!
- Crowd Friendly & Easy-To-Make. Whether you’re making them for a crowd or your family, they’re super versatile, easy to make, and DELICIOUS.
- Repurpose Ingredients. The leftover Cuban spice blend, mojo marinade, and guava BBQ sauce can be used for another one of my recipes. Win win!
Save the rest of the Cuban spice blend in a jar and use it to make my Cuban-style chicken breast (pollo a la plancha)!
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Mojo marinade. This is a citrusy-garlicky marinade that is perfect for juicy chicken wings. You can find the full mojo marinade recipe here.
- Neutral oil. I recommend you use vegetable oil or canola oil.
- Homemade sazon completa. My own delicious spice blend of ground coriander, ground annatto, garlic powder, onion powder, dried oregano, ground cumin, salt, and pepper. Find the full sazon completa recipe here.
- Guava BBQ sauce. My homemade recipe for guava bbq sauce is tangy, sweet, and the best option for leveling up these chicken wings! You can find the full recipe for the guava bbq sauce here.
- Chicken wings. Do you know what the best part of ordering chicken wings is from Butcher Box? The drumettes and flats come separated already! One less step to take care of when making these guava bbq chicken wings. Win win!
Butcher Box is a service that curates boxes of grass-fed, no-hormone-added, humanely raised beef, chicken, pork, salmon + sustainable seafood and, they deliver it right to your door. I love getting my box delivered directly to me. There are always specials – like free bacon or free ground beef – you gotta check them out! Click here to find out more info on Butcher Box!
How To Make Guava BBQ Chicken Wings
First things first, marinate the chicken wings. In a large bowl, add chicken wings and the mojo marinade. Place in the fridge for at least 1 hour up to overnight.
Discard marinade from the bowl. Pat the wings dry a bit with paper towels. Add Cuban sazon completa to the bowl. Toss the wings until they are evenly coated.
In the Oven
- Preheat the oven to 425ºF. Place a wire rack inside a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Spray the wire rack with cooking spray. Set aside.
- Bake the chicken wings. Lay the chicken wings on the wire rack. Bake for 35-45 minutes or until chicken wings are cooked through and crispy. Note: Not all ovens are created equal so keep an eye on them at the 35-minute mark. If they are not yet cooked/crispy, continue to cook for 5-10 more minutes. They are ready when the internal temp is 165ºF.
- Brush with the Guava BBQ sauce. Once the wings are fully cooked, remove them from the oven. Brush guava bbq sauce on the wings. Place back in the oven and bake until glaze is glossy and lightly caramelized about 5 minutes.
In the Air Fryer
Yes! Yes, you can. Depending on the type of air fryer you have, I’d recommend you follow the chicken setting for your air fryer. (I have this air fryer!)
- Spray the air fryer basket with cooking spray.
- Place the chicken wings in the basket and set the air fryer to 360ºF.
- Cook for 12 minutes, then flip the wings and then cook for another 12 minutes.
- Flip them over again, brush them with the guava bbq sauce, and increase the heat to 390ºF.
- Cook until crispy for another 5-6 minutes. Carefully remove the bbq wings from the air fryer basket. Serve with more guava bbq sauce.
On the Grill
- Preheat a grill to medium-high heat.
- Lightly oil the grill grates to keep the chicken wings from sticking.
- Place the wings on the grill in a single layer.
- Cook over direct heat for 20 minutes, turning every 5-10 minutes, until an internal temperature of 165ºF is reached.
- In the last 2 minutes of cooking, brush the wings with guava bbq sauce on all sides and continue to cook until the sauce is caramelized.
- Remove from the grill and allow to cool slightly.
When you’re done making this recipe, make another one of my delicious chicken recipes!
Can’t wait for you to make them!
Guava BBQ Glazed Chicken Wings
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 lbs chicken wings tips removed; drumettes and flats separated
- 1/2 cup mojo marinade
- 1/4 cup neutral oil
- 2 tablespoons homemade sazon completa
- 1/2 cup guava BBQ sauce
- Cooking spray
Instructions
- In a large bowl, add chicken wings and the mojo marinade. Place in the fridge for at least 1 hour up to overnight.
- Preheat the oven to 425ºF. Place a wire rack inside a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Spray the wire rack with cooking spray. Set aside.
- Discard marinade from the bowl. Pat the wings dry a bit with paper towels. Add Cuban sazon completa to the bowl. Toss the wings until they are evenly coated.
- Lay the chicken wings on the wire rack. Bake for 35-45 minutes or until chicken wings are cooked through and crispy. Note: Not all ovens are created equal so keep an eye on them at the 35-minute mark. If they are not yet cooked/crispy, continue to cook for 5-10 more minutes. They are ready when the internal temp is 165ºF.
- Once the wings are fully cooked, remove them from the oven. Brush guava bbq sauce on the wings. Place back in the oven and bake until glaze is glossy and lightly caramelized about 5 minutes. Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Originally published in June 2016. Updated recipe & photos in June 2022.
james brown says
Thank you so much for this amazing recipe.
jenni says
I love this chicken wings recipe. BBQ is a great activity for me. Thank you for sharing this great BBQ recipe.
tabi says
OMG looks amazing! I will make it on the best electric smoker
Varun sharma says
Thank you so much,
Juana says
This is really amazing and yummy :D
Brittany King says
If I made a batch ahead of time and put in a mason jar, how long could it stay in a pantry? Do I have to do the canning process if I did that? Also I want to try and add pineapple, any suggestions on how to add it without it making it too thin?
Jamie Silva says
Hi! I’ve never added pineapple so I can’t really say however the guava bbq lasts about a week in the fridge in an airtight container.
Jordan Adams says
Thank you so much, last guava recipe I followed asked for ginger and lemon juice, and now my sauce is way too acidic. This one is a game changer.
Ahnysha says
Can I use a guava jam instead of a paste?
Jamie Silva says
You can but just keep in mind, the consistency will not be as thick since jam is a bit thinner/spreadable than paste. Hope that helps!
Bobbi says
This looks amazing! Is there something I could substitute for the spiced rum for a non-alcohol version?
Jamie Silva says
Hi Bobbi! I believe you can substitute the rum for water however I’ve never done that myself so I can’t really predict how the end result would turn out. Try it and let me know how it works! :)
Elissa says
I’m a sucker for anything with guayaba but I’m not crazy about wings. I’m thinking of making these with chicken tenders. How would I have to adjust the temperature & cooking time for it?
Jamie Silva says
I can’t really say since I’ve never made guava BBQ chicken tenders. I’d recommend making the chicken tenders first and making the Guava BBQ sauce separately, then toss the chicken tenders in the sauce while they are still hot. Hopefully, that works out for you! :)
William says
This sauce recipe sounds delicious. I’ve never tried guava before but im going to have to hunt some down now!
Jamie says
Thank you!
Lucy says
This sauce sounds sweet, tangy, and absolutely perfect for summer bbq wings. I love tropical fruits like guava. Love the addition of rum, too!
Jamie says
Thank you Lucy!
Elizabeth says
Oh my heavens this looks and sounds AMAZING! I have some papaya paste in my cupboard from a Carribean hamper, I wonder if I could use that instead of guava paste?
Jamie says
Thank you! Hmm I believe you can use any fruit paste. Try it and let me know how it comes out. ;)
Jagruti says
I bet chicken lovers would enjoy this !
Jamie says
Thank you Jagruti!
BCA says
Yes Jagruti i agree with you as a chicken lover i love this recipe and even i did not hear about this sauce thanks jamie for this amazing master piece.
Derek | Dad With A Pan says
Looks amazing! I bet it’d be great with some spiciness added to it!
Jamie says
Thanks so much, Derek! Spicy + sweet is always a delicious combo!
Suchi @elegantmeraki says
I love sweet and salty stuff. And oh I miss guava so much! This is just perfect!
Jamie says
Thank you Suchi!